Where does this come from, and can I check it?

Station KDKA went on air from Pittsburgh to report election results. The figure is taken from Library of Congress, which is linked in full on this page. Every fact on Mondo Knows names its source rather than repeating an unsourced claim.

Is this really a music fact?

Yes. It sits on the Music shelf, one of 2,600 sourced facts grouped into space, animals, the human body, history, science and more. Category pages collect every fact in the same field.

What else can I read about it?

The links under the fact point to a quiz, game, puzzle or calculator on the same subject, and the shelf below shows related facts. The wording here is original, and quoted phrases are marked as quotations.

Mondo Knows Facts

Commercial broadcasting began in 1920

Station KDKA went on air from Pittsburgh to report election results Radio turned music into something anyone could receive for free, which upended the sheet music business. Adverts soon paid for it. Within a decade the record industry was fighting the broadcasts it could not license easily. It sits in Mondo's music collection, one of 200 facts that each trace back to the reference below.

Where this comes from

Library of Congress

Facts that can change over time are reviewed and updated. If something here looks wrong, Mondo would rather know than be confidently incorrect.

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History trivia

More facts like this

Reginald Fessenden made the first wireless radio voice transmission in 1906Continuous high-frequency radio waves transmitted voice and music on Christmas Eve The Archers is the longest running radio dramaThe BBC serial has been broadcast on consecutive days since 1951 Bing Crosby paid for America's first tape recordersThe singer invested in Ampex so his radio show could be pre-recorded Paying for airplay has a name and a scandalPayola hearings made unannounced payments to DJs a national issue around 1960 Broadcasters founded BMI in 1940 as a rivalRadio stations wanted an alternative to ASCAP's licensing fees Meet the Press is the longest running television programmeThe NBC political interview programme first aired on 6 November 1947

Tags: radio, history, broadcasting

Commercial broadcasting began in 1920: the short answers

Where does this come from, and can I check it?: Station KDKA went on air from Pittsburgh to report election results. The figure is taken from Library of Congress, which is linked in full on this page. Every fact on Mondo Knows names its source rather than repeating an unsourced claim.
Is this really a music fact?: Yes. It sits on the Music shelf, one of 2,600 sourced facts grouped into space, animals, the human body, history, science and more. Category pages collect every fact in the same field.
What else can I read about it?: The links under the fact point to a quiz, game, puzzle or calculator on the same subject, and the shelf below shows related facts. The wording here is original, and quoted phrases are marked as quotations.